Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1887-07-26
SHERMAN'S CAMPAIGN.
ITS FIRST GUN TO BE LET LOOSE AT
THE TOLEDO CONVENTION.

A Great Congregation of Buckeye Repub-
ncans To BE on Hand When 1t Goes on
Views of the Senator's Friends and
Blaine Men-A Pointer That Points to
Chicago as Convention City.
TOLEDO, Ohio, July 26-The Republican
state convention which assemblies here on
Wednesday will have as a body-guard one
of the biggest political crowds that has ever
swept down upon city in the Buckeye state.
Already the demand upon the hotels is three
times in excess of their most elastic facilities,
and every lodging house in the center of the
city has been drawn upon to provide accom-
modatlons for the coming hosts. Seven hun
dred of John Sherman's friends, with two
brass bands 10 keep them in merry mood, will
come on a special train of ten cars from
Mansfield, the senator's home. Five hun
dred lusty -lunged Republicans are en- route
from Cincinnati, while Cleveland, Spring
field, Sandusky, Youngstown and many
other cities will send the pride and flower OK
their party organization to lend eclat to the
occasion 1t will be great week for the
Republicans OF Ohio.
And yet it is not the business designated in
the official call of the state central commit
tee that is responsible for this imminent he
publican invasion of Toledo. Ii nothing
more important than the carving out of a
state ticket was on the programme sucn busl-
ness would attract comparatively few visitors
There is not the ghost of sign of opposition
TO the denomination of Governor Foraker by
reclamation. and as for the rest of the ticket
10, tod in af hour
The great feature of the gathering, the
event which is bringing in the leaders OF the
party, great and small, from the four corners
OF the state, is the proposed endorsement OF
Senator Shermans candidacy for the presi-
dency This will be the tug of war, the first
gun of the presidential campaign Of 1888,
the renewal of the old contest in the state be-
tween the friends of the favorite SONS Of
Maine and Ohio.
Whether Senator Sherman is wise in seek
lug at this time, and in the midst of all the
circumstances an Endorsement of his claims
and qualifications is question upon which
not few of his warmeSt supporters have
been divided Many of them have urged
that nothing which might be done by the
gathering OF the present week would be bind
ing upon the convention of next year, and
that premature forcing of the issue would
simply enable the opponents of the senator's
claims and ambitions to discover the weak
points in their armor, and give them chance
to make repairs. On the other hand it has
been contended that the step proposed was
fully warranted by precedent, and amply
justified moreover by the national character
of the inquiry as to the temper of the party
in the state regarding the senator's candi-
dacy. Argument concerning the advisable
ity of the step is now, however, thing of
the past. The issue will be forced, and the
senator will stand or fall by the result
Up to Monday morning there seemed q
bare possibility that the matter would he al
lowed to lie dormant, but the arrival OF
Editor Cappellar of Mansfield, one of Sher
mans chief lieutenants and chairman of the
| state central committee put all speculation al
rest. He said that the resolution would be
submitted at all odds, and that be did not be
Iieve that there would be any conspicuou:
opposition.
William J. Kumler, another Sherman man
| said: THE Blaine men in Ohio ought to con
| cede the endorsement in all fairness. When
| Sherman was defeated in Chicago i'll 1854, i'll
| stead of trying to SOW discord in the ranks by
| exhibiting any sou,ness, he was the man tc
SCUM d the keynote of the campaign by pub
| lie appeal for harmony and unity If In tn,
| face of his record in the last campaign they
| are still determined to down him in his OWL
| state, let them make the trial. 1t will bt
| at their peril"
What course will be adopted by the Sher
man opposition is an open question NJ
| estimate OF the strength of the opposing
| forces which can be relied upon has Vet beer
| made although it is claimed that 267 dele
| gates are opposed to the Endorsement OF
| Blaine Sherman or anybody else. The view
| OF many of the Blaine men were pointedly
| voiced Monday evening 10y a bucolic dele
| gate from the northwestern reserve. Let
him have the endorsement" he remarked
| -and let him have it without opposition. AL
endorsement won't count at Chicago tit Is
noticeable that at Louisville, Cleveland anC
here at Toledo, all the politicians seem to TAX
it for granted that votes of next years con
vention will go to the Garden cltyl, but vote
take the delegates
| But it is hardly probable that the Blain'
| lieutenantS viii I've willing to let the matte
| 90 thus by default A unanimous indorse
| ment of Sherman, however much or little
would mean in Ohio. could not fail to i'm
mensely improve his chances in the countrl
at large AMI this is just what the Sherman
| ties want. and his opponents are the mos
| anxious to prevent